
Lyman H. Sproull. 



SNOWY SUMMITS. 



A Collection of 



WESTERN POEMS 



BY 



/ 



Lyman H. Sproull, 



AUTHOR OF 



Lines bv Lamplight," "Camp and Cottage. 



ST. LOUIS: 

A. H. FLEMING PRINTING CO 

IS98. 




TWO COPIES RECEIVED 



T 



25ne 



COPYRIGHTED 1897, 

BY 

I^YMAN H. vSPROULIv. 



Preface. 

Jn presenting this collection of poems 
to the friendly public, the author trusts 
that he has succeeded in truthfully por- 
traying the subjects of his verse. The scout, 
the echoes, the Indian, the nameless grave, 
and the magpie in the cotton-wood, are 
among the many familiar sights and sounds 
which make dear to his heart the land of 
snowy peaks, the majestic precipices, and 
the rugged slopes which go to make up the 
great chain of the Rocky jMountains. 

L. H. S. 
Cripple Creek, Colo., July, 1897. 



Contents. 



I. SNOWY SUMMITS. pag.-:. 

Prelude, ------- 13 

Summer Clouds, ----- 14 

The Stationed Scout, - - - - - 15 

The Echoes, ------ 17 

The Brave's Return, ----- 19 

'Maggie of the Arkansaw, - - - 21 

The Shadows, ------ 22 

Dreams of the V'all, ----- 23 

The Willow by the Window, - - - 26 

The Rose at Sunset, - - - - 27 

The Emigrant's Child, - - - - 27 

All Day, ------- 28 

II. SILVA. 

The Mystic Ocean, ----- 33 

The Black Forest, ----- 34 

Silva, -------- 35 

Fi.st Sett ers of Silva, - - - - 36 

Building Hamlets and Highways, - - 37 

The King of Silva, ----- 38 

The Children of Silva, - - - - 38 

The Pack-ponies, ----- 39 

vii 



viii CONTENTS. 

II. SILVA — Conti7iued. page. 

Evening at JSilva, - - - - - 40 

Twilight at Silva, - - - . . 41 

Morning at Silva, - . . _ . 42 

Day at Silva, ------ 42 

III. INTERLUDES. 

The Clouds, ------- 47 

Interrupted Dreams, - - - - 48 

The Clock of Life, ----- 54 

A Plea for Peace, ----- 56 

IV. QUATRAINS AND PENTASTICHS. 

OUATRAINS. 

To the Gold Seeker, ----- 63 

A Smile, ------- 63 

Ambition, ------- 63 

To-day, ------- 64 

The Tiue Man, ------ 64 

Life's Quest, ------ 64 

The Cliff Dweller, ----- 65 

At the Ruins, ------ 65 

Unopened History, - - - - - 65 

The Terrestrial Household, - - - 66 

An October Evening, ----- 66 

Perseverance. ------ 67 

Leaves of Lite, ------ 67 

Hopes, 67 

The Singing Cones, - - - - - 68 



CONTENTS. jx 

IV. QUATRAINS AND PENTASTICHS— G^w- 

tinued. p^^^ 

The Seed. 68 

Kansas, ------- 68 

Hidden Qualities, ----- gg 

From the Gloom, - - - . . 69 

The Right to Dream, - - . . 69 

Nine O'Clock, - 70 

The Campers, ---... ^q 

Midnight, - - 70 

Another Day, ----.." 7^ 

The Citizen, 7j 

The vSoldier, - . . . . . 'j^ 

The Bigot, ------- 72 

The Old and the New, - - - - 72 

Requirements, ------ 72 

Dark Thoughts, - - ... 73 

The Tower, - - . . - - 73 

From Darkness to Light, - - - 73 

The Sphere of Man, 74 

Self-pride, ------ 74 

Intellectual, - - 74 

Hereafter, ------- 75 

Heretofore, - - 75 

God's Plan, ------ 75 

Procrastination, ------ 76 

Farther On, - 76 

Belated Knowledge, ----- 76 

Downcast Eyes, - - ... 77 

Look Up, 77 



X CO iV TENTS. 

IV. QUATRAINS AND PENTASTICHS— Ojw- 

tinued. ^ page. 

The Rogue, -.--*-. 77 

Those I Meet, - 78 

Only a Man, ------ 78 

The Shadows, ------ 78 

Love's Sunshiue, ----- 79 

Flowers of Life, ------ 79 

Her Tears, ------ 79 

The Looking-glass, - - - - - 80 

Deception, ------ 80 

Invite the Sun, ------ 80 

Belief, 81 

Unbelief, 81 

Evolution, 81 

Pentastichs. 

Thoughts, - 82 

Life's Story, 82 

Purity, - - - 83 

Inseparable, ------ 83 

Sinking, ------- 84 

Rising, ------- 84 

Envoy, -------- 85 

V. VERSES. 

The Gnome, 89 

On Elfin Waters, ------ 90 

Evening on the Farm, - - - - 94 

The Grove, 96 

Drops of Rain, 97 

Finale, 99 



I. 



i^OGD^ ^liimmits. 



SNOWY SUMMITS. 



PRELUDE. 



Are you sick of riisJi and siveat^ 
WJiere the soul must ever cry? 

Are you sick zvith fear and fret ; 
Are you iveary? — so am I! 

Let us steal to Nature'' s lap — 
She alone can sympatJiize — 

And as children for their nap^ 
Close in rest our dreamy eyes^ 

jyith that nioht of dusky hair 

0''er our slumt)ering faces spread — 

Till the fair surpasses fair ^ 
And oiir fears are comforted. 

Thus zvith gloiuing.^ ivind- kissed cheeks^ 
In our dreams so szueetly odd^ 

Let us seek the snozcy peaks 
Sheltered by the peace of God. 
13 



14 SA'OJFV SUMMITS. 

SUMMER CLOUDS. 



The high aerial fleet floats on 

In proud and silent majesty; 
Bright elfin barks returning home 

Across the dark blue, welkin sea. 

Far up the mountain slope the dim, 
Sweet troop of shadows follow slow, 

And marks the moving ships which limn 
Their number on the world below. 

The breath of heaven is in each sail, 
And on their decks the smile of day, 

While at their prows the azure veil 
Of distance blends to airy spray. 

On past the dark terrestrial shoal, 

To where discordant troublings cease. 

They bear some fair, unfettered soul. 
To realms of beauty and of peace. 

Now far within the evening pink. 
They pause and mingle in retreat, 

And seem to slip behind the brink 
Of ocean mystical and sweet. 



THE STATIONED SCOUT. 15 

So, fading from the world and me, 

They pass to realms of peace and dreams, 

And leave npon the ethereal sea 
No wake amoncr the vvavv beams. 



THE STATIONED SCOUT. 



High on the bold, gray granite shelf 
He builds his cabin, bleak and lone, 

Where eagles well might covet it 
As in an eyrie of their own. 

Here from his station on the height 
He views the land far, far below. 

And sees where slopes of pinon green 
Reach upward, ending in the snow. 

With pipe and glass, and dog and gun. 
Companions of the plain and wood, 

He sits and scans the broken peaks. 
Which breathe of peace and solitude. 



16 SNOWY SUMMITS. 

A\\ thro' the quiet night he hears 
The weird and lonely owlet hoots; 

And at the dawn afar appears 

The smouldering camp-fire of the Utes. 

The blazing disk of morning sun 
Across the plains, a burning flood, 

Lights up his low and dingy room. 

And paints old Bald5^'s head with blood. 

He sees far on the plains below, 

With distant hazy dreams endowed, 

Each patch of moving buffalo, 
So like the shadow of a cloud. 

Thro' all the heat of summer day. 

Each change, each object on the plain, 

Or in the hills, arrests his eye. 
Until the shadows grow again. 

He sees the western sun sink low. 

To hide behind the neighboring peaks, 

Which feed from fields of shining snow 
The babblino^ fountains of the creeks. 



THE ECHOES. 17 

And then at night the campers' light 
Comes dimly on the distant plain, 

Which brings to him in memories bright 
The days of roving youth again. 

He sees the crescent 'mid the rift 
Of nightly clouds, in tranquil light. 

Back down along the notched clift 

To bid the world and him good-nio;ht. 



THE ECHOES. 



Morning sets the echoes ringing 
Thro' the sunny hills of day: 
Die away — Die away. 
Many fade while others, bringing 
Sweet replies of youthful singing. 

Die away. 
While the ringing still keeps ringing 
Thro' the bright and dewy May: 
Die away — Die away. 



18 sNOJvr suM3nrs. 

Midday keeps the echoes flying 
Strong and hopeful, wild and gay 
Die away — Die away. 
Others come while they are dying, 
Coming, calling, ever crying. 

Die away. 
Still replying, keep replying 
Thro' the vaulted skies of day: 
Die away — Die away. 

Now the echoes all are meeting 
In the evening, soft and gray: 
Die away — Die away. 
While the feeble heart is beating 
With this one continuous greeting, 

Die away. 
Still repeating, still repeating, 
Where the fitful shadows play: 
Die away — Die away. 



THE BRAVE'S RETURN. 19 

THH BRAVE'S RETURN. 

The river is soft with that holy light 
Which comes from the queen of the silent 
night — 

A returning brave 

From the battle's rave, 
In his bark canoe on the moonlit wave, 
Is gliding along o'er the waters bright. 

The mountains, far in the distant west. 
Outlined on the cold blue, starry breast 

Of a midnight sky. 

Rise dark and high, 
Like sentries over the hills which lie 
Along the river in tranquil rest. 

The boat is moored b}- the moonlit sand, 
And the bush is parted with wary hand, 
Till a path is found 
On the damp, cold ground. 
Which leads the brave with a jo^'ous bound 
To the hidden home of his native land. 



20 SNOJVV SU ATM ITS. 

Two eyes peep in where the soft moonlight 
Steals down thro' the tent from the silent 
night; 

And there she lies 
With her dark, deep eyes, 
Unconscions quite of the starry skies, 
But wide awake to a vision bright. 

A dusky form from the dewy vines, 

Steals out from the shadows among the pines, 

Like a spirit strayed 

F'rom the mystic shade 
Of the Hunting Ground, to again invade 
The happy haunt where his love reclines. 

The hills are silent; the wood is bright; 
And the boat still rides in the soft moonlight; 
While thro' the rent 
In the hemlock tent, 
The gaze of the heavenly stars is bent 
On the brave who dreams with his love 
to-niirht. 



MAGGIE OF THE ARKANSAIV. 21 
MAGGIE OF THE ARKANSAW. 

Maggie from her cotton-wood, 

Young and helpless, watched the quiver 

Of the sunset on the river. 

Dying to a dusky shiver 
As the shadows veiled the flood. 

There she saw the day depart 

From her nest, and yawned and spluttered, 
As she closed her eyes and muttered 
Many gratitudes, which fluttered 

From her overflowing heart. 

When the morning came again, 
Maggie turned her eyes as ever 
On the rolling of the river, — 
Which would dimple, ripple, quiver, 

With the wind and with the rain. 

When at last the fall-winds raw. 

Woke the willows with their sighing, 
Maggie, screaming, laughing, crying. 
Went a-shooting and a-flying 

Up and down the Arkansaw. 



22 sxoiry SUMMITS. 

THH SHADOWS. 



Slowly the shadows creep 

Down from the peaks; 
Down from the woody steep, 
Over the creeks; 
Painting on pasture lands sombresome 
streaks. 

Out from the spruce they come, 

Out from the mill; 
Born of the setting sun. 

Silent and still; 
Stretching and reaching out over the hill. 

Stately and column-wise, 

Slender and tall, 
Sweetly they solemnize 

Barnside and wall. 
While in the dusty lane, broken they fall. 

Over the sandy plain, 

Over the farms. 
Back to the night again, 

Back to its arms; 
Back to its silence, and back to its charms. 



DREAMS OF THE FALL 23 

DREAMS OF THE FALL. 



Distance so mclloiv^ 

Ha2V and blue ; 
Aspens in yelhnc^ 

Mornings in dezv; 

Clouds in the lieaven 
Sea ttered like fieece ; 

Sounds in the even 
Muffled 7cith peace ; 

Nothijig to cumber — 
Dreams of the fall — 

Beauty and slumber 
Rest over all. 

II. 

Here in touch with Nature, dreaming, - 
Dreaming by the smoky streams. 

We can watch the sunset gleaming 
Softly over scattered dreams. 



24 S NO IVY sum 3/ ITS. 

Dreams are lingering in the grasses; 

Dreams are lingering in the pines; 
Dreams are lingering in the voices 

Of the cool, crisp, monntain winds. 

Here the magpies' notes are calling, 

Calling wildly, loudly, sad; 
And the leaves are falling, falling, 

Red and yellow, gold and red. 

Dreams are lingering in the blossoms 
Faded by the upland glade; 

Dreams are lingering in the sunlight; 
Dreams are lingering in the shade. 

Sharp and chill the wind is breathing,- 
Breathing over distant peaks, 

Where belated birds are leaving 
Canon, crag, and frost}- creeks. 

Dreams are lingering in verdure 

Bitten by the early frost; 
Dreams are lingering in the thickets. 

Where the tomtit's cry is lost. 



DREAMS OF THE FALL. 25 

Here we see tlie hills of autuinii, 
And the vales which intervene; 

And the pine-trees and the aspen — 
Yellow patches mixed with green. 

Dreams of beanty linger with us, 
On the hills and by the streams; 

Dreams of God and dreams of Nature, — 
Ever-blessed, peaceful dreams! 

III. 

Dislaucc so Dicllo'a', 

Hasy and blue ; 
Aspens ill yelloTv^ 

Mornings in dezc ; 

Brooklets all snioky^ 
Freighted wit It leaz'es ; 

Canons so nioky 

JVliieh silence reU'ieves; 

Nothing to cumber — 

Dreams of the fall — 
Beauty and slu)?iber 

Rest over all . 



26 SNOlVr SU31MITS. 

THE WILLOW BY THE WINDOW. 



Denuded by the wind and frost, 
The lonely willow lifts its arms, 

As if in prayer for something lost — 
The beauty of its summer charms. 

Alone, a picture of distress, 

It bends and bows to every gust, 

Which jeers its trembling nakedness. 
And soils it branches with the dust. 

And on the frosty window-pane. 
At early morning, cold and clear, 

I see its ghostly arms again, 
As painted by the atmosphere. 

Ah, mourner, there shall come a day. 
When freed from frost and wind's demean, 

The sweet and tender, budding May 

Shall Sfive thee back thv robes of green! 



THE ROSE AT SUNSET. 27 

THE ROSE AT SUNSET. 

That fading light low in the west 
Is but the parting smile of day, 

Which, resting on the mountain crest, 
Puts on a countenance of gray. 

The rose has caught the last faint blush 
Of sunset on her tender cheek, 

And drops to sleep within the hush 
Of this great shadow^ of the peak; 

While folded in her kindly breast 
There lies a drop of evening dew — 

So like a tear her heart has blessed 

For some dear soul she loved and knew. 



THE EMIGRANT'S CHILD, 



Far out in the hush of the mountain land 
There lies the grave of a little child; 

Unwept by heart and untended by hand — 
Alone with the grass and the aspen wild, 



28 SWOIVV SUMMITS. 

It was years ago — so the story goes — 

When the "Fifties" rang with the tales of 
gold, 
That they laid her there, 'mid the falling 
snows, 
To sleep alone in the damp and cold. 

What mother sobbed with the pangs of woe. 
What father grieved as he nrged his teams, 

Tradition tells not, and we only know 

That the child is there in a land of dreams. 

It was just last year, when I passed that way, 
I saw o'er the monnd in the bushes low, 

A bird had erected her nest to stay 

And sing to the soul of the sleeper below- 



ALL DAY. 



All day the mantling mist has wrapped 

The peaks about the town; 
All day the weeping clouds have dropped 

Their tears of sorrow down. 



ALL DA Y. 29 

All day within this lonely room 

jNIy thoughts played hide and seek, 

As children thro' the mist and gloom, 
Who would not smile or speak. 

All day these dripping eaves have kept 

My soul awake to pray 
For these dear ones, that have but wept, 

All day — all day — all day. 



II. 
ifua. 



SUVA. 



I. 
THE MYSTIC OCEAN. 

Once, deep in a dream's creation, 
Swept a dark blue, mj-stic ocean. 

Splashing on the far horizon, 
At the sky-wall of its waters. 

Stars hung o'er it in the twilight; 

Moons hung o'er it in the midnight; 
Suns hung o'er it in the daylight; 

Rainbows spanned it in the morning; 
Rainbows spanned it in the evening; 

Clouds went drifting high above it. 
While the whispering winds caressed it. 

Wooed its waves and sought its border 

And these fairy moons went drifting 
Thro' the sky in all directions; 

North to south, 'mid starry bowers. 
West to east; there fading softly 
33 



34 SNOIV)' SUMM/rS. 

To dim, flickering lights, suspended 

Like so many fairy lanterns, 
O'er the dark and dreamy ocean. 

And these fairy suns would cluster 
In the vaulted skies of heaven. 

Shedding soft and silvery arrows 
Down upon the world beneath them. 

II. 
THE Bl,ACK FOREST. 

In the middle of this ocean, 

Growing from a sunken island. 
Was a forest, black as midnight, 

Casting shadows deep and silent 
O'er the wrinkling world of waters; 

Where the floating clouds around it. 
Drifting thro' the gloom and silence, 

Broke upon the lone and sombre 
Wall of this great wood enchanted. 

Massive tree-trunks, which would measure 
Many miles in their circumference. 

Stood amid the floating mosses — 
In the midnight, reaching upward, 



SILVA. 35 

Leagues and leagues until their topmost 

Branches brushed the clouds which floated 
'Neath the moons and stars of heaven. 

From the skies, in all directions, 
Came the ocean, rolling, racing. 

Breaking high in many voices 

Thro' the night of massive tree-trunks; 

Where the echoes, weird and dreary, 
Answered back the ceaseless slapping 

Of the waves throughout the darkness. 

III. 
SILVA. 



This was Silva: — this great forest; 

This strange continent of tree-tops; 
This black wood of dreamy echoes — 

Rooted in the slime of midnight. 
With its top-boughs tipped with sunlight, 

Tipped with moonlight, tipped with star- 
light; 
This great wilderness, whose branches 

Crossed and recrossed thro' the darkness, 
With its sombre leaves and mosses. 

Like dark, massive clouds suspended. 



36 SNOIVV SUMM/TS. 

IV. 
FIRST SETTLERS OF SILVA. 



Ill across the silent ocean, 

From the distant land of Nowhere, 
Came a band of elfin people — 

Fnnny featnred little creatnres — 
To this oceanic forest. 

Landing on the mossy islands, 

Floating thro' the one continnons 
Midnight, with their many candles 

Gleaming strangely thro' the darkness- 
Like a swarm of fire-flies gathered — 

They erected miles of ladders 
Up the gloomy tree-trnnks, reaching 

Into many snnny sections 
Of this dark and mossy region. 

Finding in their upper Silva 

Many bright and pleasant places, 
They called other elfins to them 

In across the world of waters; 
Bringing in their ships of silver. 

Cattle, chickens, dogs and ponies. 
That would climb the curious ladders 

With their little elfin masters. 



SI/. VA. 37 

V. 

BUILDING HAMLETS AND HKiHWAYS. 



Here these queer, industrious people, 

In the sunlit parts of Silva, 
Far above the inky darkness, 

Hewed broad highways round the tree- 
trunks. 
And along the giant branches; 

Built their swinging bridges, reaching 
Out from limb to limb, connecting 

All the parts of their dominion. 

Then they built their silvan hamlets; 

Hewed their avenues thro' mosses. 
Round their markets and their dwellings; 

Made their little parks in shady 
No )ks, and raised their odd pavilions, 

Where the fountains, fed from lakelets 
Of the dew upon the foliage, 

Sparkled in the mellow sunlight. 



38 s/voiyy suMM/rs. 

VI. 

THE KING OF SILVA. 

Halo was the King of Silva, 
And lie loved his people dearly, 

Who erected him a palace 

Near the border of the forest — 

In the brightest, highest tree-top, 

Reached by one long, winding highway. 

Like a serpent round the tree-trunk. 

Here he viewed his queer dominion 

Daily from his odd piazza. 
Where the leaves and creepers mingled. 

Miles and miles below him wrinkled 
The great ocean which went quivering, 

Moaning, splashing thro' the tree-trunks, 
Down in that continuous midnight. 

VI r. 
THE CHILDREN OF SILVA. 

Tiu}^ children raced the pathways 

With their jumping-ropes and playthings — 

Swinging in the tangled grape-vines; 
Hauofinor over dim abvsses; 



SILVA. 39 

Clambering down in excavations 
Of the knots, or shouting wildly 

When thev gained some sunny leaflet, 
Over which they romped and rambled. 

Sun-tanned youths and rosy maidens, 
Filling all the leaves with laughter, 

Strayed away to backwood corners 
Of the forest, with their baskets 

And their prankish little horses — 
Loading them with nuts and berries. 

Grapes and apples, which they gathered. 

VIII. 

THE PACK-PONIES. 

Ah, how sweet to watch them coming! 

These dear, faithful little ponies — 
Stringing out along the branches, 

Down the twigs along the pathways; 
Rounding knots and jumping hillocks 

Of the bark, overlaid with mosses — 



40 .S'.VO^J' SUMMITS. 

All ill line with bells and bridles — 
One beneath a mammoth apple; 

One beneath a niit or berry; 
Others laden with the simps 

Gathered from the sprays of maple. 

Out across the swinging bridges, 

Where the twilight depths beneath them 

Lay serene as bay or lakelet; 

Out along the winding highways, 

Round the tree-trunks, hastening homeward 
To some little silvan village. 

IX. 

EVENING AT SILVA. 



When the evening came with rainbows 

Shining forth in all directions, 
Halo watched the north-inoons rising 

Slowly o'er his leafy kingdom — 
Floating southward o'er the tree-tops. 

Till they passed his silvan palace, 
And at last, in southern heavens, 

Dwindled down to stars and vanished. 



SUA' A. 41 

Then the west-moons, which belated 

In their trip across the heavens, 
Came on faster than the others; 

Sailing high above the ruler. 
Drifting eastward; dying softly 

To wee, gleaming lights which hovered 
Just above the east horizon. 

Where the sky and ocean mingled. 

X. 

TWILIGHT AT SILVA. 



When at last the moons had vanished, 

Or had faded to a glimmer, 
And the twilight darkened softly. 

Like a veil of peace descending, 
Halo watched the lights which twinkled 

Like the million stars of heaven, 
From the many rural hamlets 

Scattered thro' the leafy country, 
Where his people in their houses. 

Played their games and sang rejoicing. 



42 SNOJVi' SUM3IITS. 

XI. 
MORNING AT SILVA. 



When the niorning came, and many 

Snnken suns came climbing upward, 
Or appeared thro' depths of azure, 

Casting many quivering arrows 
Thro' the airy territory. 

Halo listened to the crowing 
Of the many cocks, which sounded 

Faint and dreamy in the distance; 
Or the barking of some startled 

Dog that heard the early rumble 
Of some elfin farmer's wagon. 

As it rattled down the branches. 
Out upon the wooden roadway. 

XII, 

DAY AT SILVA. 



Thro' the sunny day King Halo 

Watched the many winding highways, 

Lined with people and with ponies 
Going to and from the hamlets. 



SILVA. 43 

Where they bartered at their markets. 

Here and there were droves of cattle, 
Flocks of chickens, bands of ponies. 

High on snnny leaves which shaded 
Other droves and bands commingling 

On the lower leaves and branches. 
Where the tinkling bells awakened 

Echoes thro' the night below them. 

Thns the ruler watched, delighted 

With his busy little people; 
Watched them coming, watched them going; 

Climbing up the leafy pathways; 
Traveling on the wooden highways; 

Crossing on the swinging bridges; 
Drinking at the sparkling fountains; 

Bartering at the shady markets; 
Dancing in the queer pavilions; 

Singing in their rosy parlors; 
Placing games and making merry, 

In this elfin land of Silva. 



Ill 



fFit^^rlydes. 



INTERLUDES. 



THH CLOUDS. 



The skies are filled with clouds of gray 

Down on my heart the sunshine lies. 

All! what care I for outer skies, 
Or clouds that may infest the day, 

While my soul sleeps in paradise — 

In Hope's sweet paradise? 

Where are the clouds of yesterday? 

I cannot see them in the sky. 
Alas! they have not fled away! 

Down on my weary heart the}- lie 
In banks of dark and cliilh- gray — 
In banks of sullen orrav. 



47 



48 SA'OlVr SUMMITS. 

INTERRUPTED DREAMS. 



I. 

Soul, I am weak and weary; 

Soul, thou hast eyes to see, 
Look thro' the veil of slumber. 

Speak thro' thy love to me: 

What are these voices saying? — 
Sad and discordant sounds 

Out in the darkness straying — 
Out where the gloom abounds. 

II. 

Only the luitid coiiiplaiuing ; 

Only the pine'' s reproof; 
Only the night-cloud raining 

Over the cabin roof; 

Only the herd intoning 
Out by the lonely shed ; 

Only the rii'er moaning 
Over its p-ra7'el-bed. 



INTERLUDES. 49 

III. 

Down ill the depths of shimber 

Visions will brighten there; 
Brighten with naught to cninber — 

Fancies so sweet and fair. 

Now to my eyes are dawning 

Sights which my boyhood knew; 

Sights which were bathed in sunshine, 
Sights which were bathed in dew: 

Here is the school-room holding 

Squares of the midday sun; 
Here are the whispering scholars, 

And here are the cobwebs spun; 

Here is the teacher standing; 

Down to her desk she goes, 
Glancing with looks of kindness 

Ov^er her drowsy rows. 

Here are the prairies sleeping 
Sweet in their summer dream; 

Here are the flowers peeping 
Up by the babbling stream; 



50 SiVOll'}' SUMMITS. 

Here are the cooling shadows, 
Cast by the willow-trees, 

Out on the scented meadow^s, 
Filled with the droning bees; 

Here are the grape-vines clinging 
To oaks which are tall and fair; 

Here is the redbreast singing 
Songs on the fragrant air; 

Here are the locusts whirring 
Out from the maple-trees; 

Here are the tree-tops stirring, 
Filled with the summer breeze; 

Here are the wild oats waving 
Over the prairie lands; 

Here are the flowers nodding, 
Tempting our childish hands. 

Why do these visions waver, 
Brighten, to soon depart? 

What are these discords entering 
In at mv trembling heart? 



INTERLUDES. 51 



IV. 



Only the dark cloud scoivling 
Out in the moonlight 7c>ane; 

Only a lone zvolf ho2vling 
Over the lonely plain ; 

Only the echoes dying 
Doivn on the cliffs afar; 

Only a night -haivk flying 
Out in the murky air. 



Sleep while the soul is dreaming; 

Sleep while the night is here; 
Sleep while the stars are gleaming 

Down thro' the heavens clear. 

Here are the wheat fields waving, — 

Billowy seas of green; 
Here are the tall groves standing 

Out in the sunset sheen; 

Here are the corn fields nodding, 
Decked in their silks and leaves; 

Here are the stacks and stubbles, 
And here are the scattered sheaves; 



52 SNOWY SUA/M/TS. 

Here are the threshers singing 
Out on the wind-swept plain; 

Here are the wagons stringing 
In with their loaded grain; 

Here are the cattle lowing 
Down by the pasture i3ars; 

Here are the milkers going 
Under the early stars; 

Here thro' the drove of bossies — 
Lulled by a tinkling bell — 

Swiftly the fire-fly carries 
Light to the lonely dell; 

Here conies the sweet and mellow 
Voice of the whip-poor-will, 

Floating in waves of music 
Out on the silent hill; 

Here are the pathways leading 
Home — to the home of yore — 

Home to the heart of mother; 
Home to the cottao-e door. 



INTERLIDICS. 53 

Why are these visions fadino;, — 

Fading before my eyes? 
Why are my fancies flitting, 

Now as the sweet dream dies? 

Why has my sonl awakened, 

Startled as if in fear? 
What are these sonnds which gather 

Now on my wary ear? 

VI. 

Only the ivind coniplaitiing; 

Only the pine's reproof; 
Only the night-cloud raining 

Over tlie calnn roof; 

Only the echoes playing 

Out ivhere the mountains stand ; 

Only the spirit straying 
Out of a promised land. 



54 SNOWY SUMMITS. 

THE CLOCK OF LIFE. 

Life is going 

All unknowing — 

Rivers flowing 
On and on. 

Hopes are waning; 

Life's complaining: 
Time gone — Time going — 
Time going — Time gone. 

Love is calling, 
Leaves are falling, 
Winds appalling. 

Grieve our home. 
Hearts are beating. 
Love's repeating. 
Calling, come: Come, calling: 
Come, calling: Calling, come. 

Time is flying. 
Night is hieing. 
Day is dying, 
Sad and wan. 



INTERLUDES 55 

Hopes are waning; 

Life's complaining: 
Time gone — Time going — 
Time going — Time gone. 

Love is sleeping, 

Byes are weeping, 

Age is creeping 
Up anon. 

Hearts are beating, 

Love's repeating, 
Calling, come: Come, calling: 
Come, calling: Calling, come. 

Dreams are passing. 

Winds harassing, 

Clouds amassing 
At the dawn. 

Hope is waning; 

Life's complaining: 
Time gone — Time going — 
Time Sfoine — Time eone. 



56 SNOWY SU31MITS. 

Death is seizing, 
Life's uneasing, 
Lips are freezing, 

Kissed and gone. 
Hearts are beating. 
Love's repeating. 
Calling, come: Come, calling: 
Come, calling: Calling, come. 



A PLEA FOR PEACE. 



Oh Trouble, why trouble you me? 

The day it is balmy and bright; 
Keep out of its sweetness for me; 

Keep out of the softness of night. 

Keep out of my heart, my heart; 

Keep out of my ear, my ear; 
For I feel in the depth of my soul 

That the spirit of peace is here. 



INTIIRLUDES. 57 

So Trouble, don't trouble you me, 
For the world is as happy as fair; 

Ah Trouble, keep out of my eyes; 
Keep off from the l^rown of my hair. 

The clouds of the night are not sad, 

And the winds are suggestive of mirth; 

So Trouble, away from my door, 

While the darkness is over the earth. 

The past is forgotten and gone. 
And the future is nobly planned; 

So Trouble, keep out of my heart, 
While the sunshine is over the land. 

The mountains are dancing in light; 

Or clothed in that mystical blue; 
Or wrapped in the dreaming of night; 

Forgetful, oh Trouble, of you. 

Keep out of my way, ni}- way; 

Keep out of my sight, my sight; 
Oh Trouble, keep out of my day; 

Oh Trouble, keep out of my night. 



58 SNOJVV SUMMITS. 

The leaves are all dancing with joy, 
While the winds of the valley are free; 

And I live in the strength of their love; 
So Tronble, why tronble yon me? 

What matter, tho' love is a pain! 

There 're times when the saddest are gay; 
And mine will be coming again — 

So Trouble, keep out of my way. 

There is love in the musical wind; 

There is beauty in every place; 
So Trouble, keep out of my mind; 

So Trouble, keep out of my face. 

Keep out of the peace of my breast; 

Keep out of the ring of my laugh; 
Oh Trouble, keep out of my rest; 

(3h Trouble, keep out of my path. 

I'm still in the morning of life, 

With a soul that's unhampered and free; 
And my hopes are as strong as my love — 

So Trouble, why trouble you me? 



INTERLUDES. 59 

What matter, tho' tears I have shed; 

What matter, tho' pains I have borne? 
They are over — all over and gone; 

So Trouble, keep out of the morn. 

The sunset is flashing with gold, 

And the wind has forgotten to grieve; 

Ah Trouble, keep out of their hold; 
Ah Trouble, keep out of the eve. 

And Trouble, keep out of my plans; 

Keep out of my soul, my soul; 
Keep out of my heart, my hands; 

Oh Trouble, keep out of the whole. 

For life is not worthless nor wrong. 

If hopeful and earnest I be; 
And my heart is as willing as strong — 

So Trouble, why trouble you me? 



IV. 



0MQtr(aiFiSaiW pe:pit(asti@%. 



QUATRAINS. 



TO THE GOLD SEEKER. 



Before you throw your float away, 
(ro break it — look it thro' and thro'; 

For hidden in its gloom and gray. 

There may be specks of gold for you. 



A SMILE. 



A smile is but the blossom of a thought; 

A bud, concealed in some secluded place 
Amid a million buds, which caught 

A ray of light and blossomed on the face. 

AMBITION. 



Place high your mark and shoot away, 

Although the arrows fall; 
We always get a little done 

B\- striving after all. 
63 



fi4 SNOIVV SUMAIITS. 

TO-DAY. 



Let's build to-day what our to-day demands, 
And let to-morrow's stone be laid to- 
morrow; 
This wall of life erected by our hands, 

Should grow but as we grow, in joy or 
sorrow. 

THE TRUE MAN. 



I love the man who, speaking to a friend, 
Finds time to place a good word for his 
wife; 
And thro' the conversation to the end, 

Shows love for those who help to bless his 
life. 

LIFE'S QUEST. 



A miner, searching all his life for gold. 
In dark and diverse places, ill at ease. 

Looked o'er an autumn forest, and behold! 
His life-long quest was shining on the 
trees! 



OfJATRAINS. 65 

THE CLIFF DWELLER. 



High on the cliff where sunset fancies throng, 

We find the notched sticks where once he 

clomb 

To where his loved ones met him with a 

song, 

Which still, I fancy, fills his ruined home. 



AT THE RUINS. 



Where once a happy life thronged thro' the 

door. 

And filled with song and laughter every 

room , 

We now have dust and mummies on the floor; 

Together with the mystery and the gloom. 



UNOPENED HISTORY. 



A history sleeps within this air profound. 
Which still remains unopened unto man; 

All clasped in golden silence, stitched and 
bound 
By all the prayers of that vanished clan. 



66 SNOJf'}' SCMMITS. 

THE TERRESTRIAL HOUSEHOLD. 



The evening winds has snuffed at last the 
candle of the day, 
While lie the sunset embers on the hearth- 
stone of the west; 
Down from the welkin curtains with a soft 
and soothing ray, 
The stars smile o'er the household of hu- 
manity at rest. 



AN OCTOBER EVENING. 



Now the hazy hills of lazy autumn whisper 
of October, 
While the tinted peaks seem printed on 
the evening, faintly bright, 
And the lonely plains tell only of a life that's 
weird and sober, 
As the hunter's moon goes drifting thro' 
the bosom of the night. 



QUATA^AINS 67 

PERSEVERANCE. 

Work oil, dejected fashioner, 
111 crude, though honest art; 

A simple tear is no disgrace 
When coming from the heart. 



LEAVES OF LIFE. 

Our life is but a book of leaves; 

We turn one over — call it new; 
But soon 'tis soiled, and sadly grieves 

Our heart as much as past ones do. 



HOPES. 



How quick the step, when lie ahead 
The prospects of an earthly gain; 

How slow the step when, cold and dead, 
Such hopes are numbered with the slain. 



68 SNOIV}' SUMMITS. 

THE SINGING CONES. 



While straying thro' the mountain pines, 
I gathered up some scattered cones, 

And pointing them toward the winds. 
They sang to me in elfin tones. 



THE SEED. 



Why should the seed cling to the winter 
clod 
Thro' every dark and cold and stormy 
hour? 
Ah, friends, within its silent bosom, God 
Has placed a soul to blossom in a flower. 



KANSAS. 



All high and dry beneath the glare of many 
suns. 
It sleeps where once there ran a dark and 
slimy sea; 
Its chalky beds, its rocks, and fossil skele- 
tons, 
Tell what its life has been — but not what 
it may be. 



QUATRAINS. 69 

HIDDEN QUALITIES. 



'Tis only as we burnish stone 
We find its polished worth; 

'Tis only as we question souls 
That knowledge cometh forth. 



FROM THE GLOOM. 



The purest diamond ever grows 
In places dark and narrow; 

So, oft the sweetest thoughts are those 
Which come from depths of sorrow. 



THE RIGHT TO DREAM. 



If we can't be the stars above, 
In magnitude to beam like them. 

We have a right their light to love, 
And as admirers, dream of them. 



70 SNOW)' SUMMITS. 

NINE O'CLOCK. 



The heavens are arched by the Milky-way; 

The crescent is hnng in a western pine; 
The Pleiades blink in the orient gray, 

And the Dipper is np to the mark of nine. 



THE CAMPERS. 



Where night o'ertakes them there they make 
a home, 
And while the camp-fire paints their grimy 
cheeks. 
They listen to the music of the pines, 

Or watch the moon drift over distant peaks. 



MIDNIGHT. 



When midnight crowns the silent peaks 
around 
With sinking stars and moon with placid 
light. 
How sweet to dream of God's untrodden 
ground. 
And listen to the voices of the night. 



OUATRAIXS. 71 

ANOTHER DAY. 

When Sol peeps in npon the brightening 
slope 

Of silent forests, tipped with silvery ray, 
He sees a world of dreamy eyes which ope 

Upon the morning of another day. 



THE CITIZEN. 

Man loves his country as he loves his wife. 
His children, and the comforts of his home; 

If he cares little for his own in life. 

He cares still less for what's his country's 
doom . 

THE SOLDIER. 



The soldier wTio proved truest in the field, 
Was he, who, back of powder, shell and 
ball, 

Had dear ones in his home who daily kneeled 
For one who foueht to save their little all. 



72 SNOWY SUMMITS. 

THE BIGOT. 

The bigot thinks that he of course is tight, 
And when another cannot see as he, 

He says, "Poor soul! he has not seen the 
light." 
The other says, "As dark as he can be!" 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 

What seemed a truth but yesterday 
Has faded now to specter wan; 

Another day with brighter ray 

Has brought a new truth with the dawn. 



REQUIREMENTS. 

If earth did not require a light, 
We should not have a sun; 

If man did not require a God, 
He would not think of One. 



QUA TRAINS. 73 

DARK THOUGHTS. 

x\s stealthy rats that gnaw the grain at night, 
If imdistnrbed will make their nests in it; 

So these dark thoughts, if never put to flight, 
Will gnaw the heart, till ruin rests in it. 



THE TOWER. 

On solid rock, which ocean billows chafe. 
In darkest night amid the seething strife. 

It stands erect and holds that lamp of faith 
Above the dark and stornn- sea of life. 



FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT. 

The one who weeps the most forlorn at night, 
And grieves that clouds are hovering o'er 
his way, 

May be the first to hail the breaking light, 
And bask in beams of Truth's eternal dav. 



74 SNOWY S COMMITS. 

THE SPHERE OF MAN. 

'Tis no disgrace to the worm to crawl, 
But mimic him not, "ye sons of God;" 

He raised you up, in His love for all. 

And placed you over the worm and clod. 



SELF-PRIDE. 



Speak not with a soft and a silly pride 

Of the things you've done, both good and 
true. 

But think, as the world moves by your side, 
Of the many things that you should do. 



INTELLECTUAL. 

The lower life's station, the closer are 
wrought 
The walls of our soul's intellectual sphere, 
And the higher we climb on the ladder of 
thought. 
The wider the arches of heaven appear. 



QUATRAINS. 75 

HEREAFTER. 

We mark the foot-prints coming out of dawn; 

We watch them till they fade away in 
night; 
In faith we see them leading on and on, 

In other worlds more spiritually bright. 



HERETOFORE. 

We mark the foot-prints coming out of dawn, 
And wonder why the light reveals no more. 

Far back of life's mysterious curtain drawn. 
Are there no foot-prints on the heretofore? 



GOD'S PLAN. 

God knows much better than the man 
Why that has been or this should be; 

Be hopeful then. His loving plan 
Was perfected for you and nie. 



76 sjvojrr summits. 

PROCRASTINATION. 

"To-morrow," says the sluggard, "I'll arise 
And do the work — to-day's too short and 
narrow." 
The morning conies; he opes his drowsy 
eyes 
And mutters still, "To-morrow." 



FARTHER ON. 

A little farther on and these defeats 

Which grieve us now will all be past and 
gone: 

So all thro' life the hopeful heart repeats, 
"A little farther on." 



BELATED KNOWLEDGE. 

An old man told me once, "Life's fugitive 
Will never learn until his end is nigh; 

And when he's found out how he ought to 
live, 
He's readv then to die." 



QUATRAINS. 77 

DOWNCAST EYES. 

The one with eyes upon the ground 
May tell you how the shadows lie, 

But never of the beauties found 
Within the azure sky. 



LOOK UP. 



Come, place your eyes upon the skies. 
And fix your thoughts upon a star; 

Then filled with Nature's promises. 
The shadows will be far. 



THE ROGUE. 

The rogue may shun the laws of man, 
And be a much respected creature 

Among his fellows, but he can 
Not shun a single law of Nature. 



78 SNOIV}' SUMAIITS. 

THOSH 1 MEET. 

When I see whom I please, and please those 
whom I see, 

My life is a peace and a pleasure to me; 
But when I go mix with the mixtion of men, 

I drop to the depth of despondency then. 



ONLY A MAN. 

I am only a man with a mannish plan, 
In a sinfnl world, with the worldly sin; 

Here trudging along with my kin and clan, 
And fighting along ( with mvself ) to win. 



THE SHADOWS. 

Those shadows in your heart, my love. 
Have object thoughts within the mind, 

With just enough of light above 

To cast them where thev lie outlined. 



QCATk'AIXS. 79 

LOVE'S SUNSHINE. 

Let that love divine and holy, 

Which the thoughts of life enroll, 

Cast its sqnares of dreamy snnshine 
Thro' the windows of the sonl. 



FLOWERS OF LIFE. 

Flowers phicked and pressed with love; 

Flowers plucked and pressed with strife: 
Bookmarks, gathered as we rove 

In the winding walks of life. 



HER TEARS. 



vShe never tried to hide her smile 

Which filled with joy the many years; 

But ah, how sad to me the while 
She tried so hard to hide her tears. 



80 s NO IVY srj/j///s. 

THE LOOKING-GLASS. 



The looking-glass will tell the truth 
When e'er confronted for an interview, 

Both to the aged and the youth — 

And that is more than many friends will do. 



DECEPTION. 



Ofttimes the needy will not beg from thee; 

Too manly they, to ask for charity; 
While those who plenty have, and have to 
spare. 

Will beg with faces pitiful as pra}er. 



INVITE THE SUN. 



If there be tears still lingering in thy heart, 
'Twere better they should flow till they are 
done; 

If darkness trouble to thy soul impart. 
Go let it out, and then invite the sun. 



QUATRAINS. 81 

BELIEF. 

How gladly beats the heart of one 
Who builds a faith beyond to-day; 

Who trusts in this: Thy zvill be done^ 
And feels his soul is not of clay. 



UNBELIEF. 



How sadly beats the heart of one 

Who sees no farther than the mould, 

And feels, when his dear loves are gone, 
That all is ended — in the cold. 



EVOLUTION, 



As brick by brick the wall is laid 
Until it meets the sky above, 

So step by step our journey's made 
To Peace, to Purity, and Love. 



PENTASTICHS. 



1. 

THOUGHTS. 



These messengers are never checked 

By wind or weather, wave or rocks; 
But in their magic feathers decked, 
Thro' shade and sunshine they collect. 
And go and come in silent flocks. 



2. 
LIFE'S STORY. 



This life is but a story read 
By souls who can not see ahead, — 
Whose Author's wise and blessed aim. 
Is not to give His loving name. 
Until the closing leaf is read. 
82 



PENTASTICHS. 83 

PURITY. 



Every bloom and bursting bud 
"'" Holds a plea 

For purity: — 
Sweet commandment of our God, 
Sent alike to vou and me. 



4. 
INSEPARABLE. 



Verse and poet only part 

To rejoin as friends again; 
What is written in the heart, 
Must reveal a counterpart 
In the copy from the pen. 



84 SNOWY SC'3/Af/TS. 

5. 

SINKING. 



Sinking: — a flaming light 
Down thro' the western sky, 
While the colnmbine 
And the rose divine 
Look up to say good-bye. 



RISING. 



Rising: — a mellow light 
Far in the orient gray, 
While the rose divine 
And the colnmbine 
Look up to greet the day 



PENTASTICHS. 85 

7. 
HNVOY. 



// / had a couch of the rosy clouds^ 
And a pilloiv of airy light ^ 
I would ivrap myself in a twilight gozon^ 
With the starry curtains of Jieavoi dropped 
dozen ^ 

And dream of niy God to-night. 



V. 



VERSES. 



THE GNOME. 



Down ill the depth of a mountain cave, 
Where the winds play "who-pee-do," 
A gay gnome sits 
On the broken bits 
Of the topaz, peeping thro' 
At the mystic light which is drifting in from 
a sky that is cold and blue. 

And there with a cloak of the checkered 
light, 
And a harp of the straying wind, 
He plays and sings 
Of the many things 
Which flit thro' his jocund mind. 
Nor feels for the grief of this outside world 
which his dreams have left behind. 



90 SNOWY SUMMITS. 

ON ELFIN WATERS. 



I knew Elfin Iho well; 

Elfin Iho well knew me; 
So he led me in a dream 

To a magic brook and sea. 

There it was, the Magic Brook, 
Like a winding strip of sky, 

Where the pinks and "what-be-nots," 
Bloomed and nodded sweetly by. 

But instead of flowing down 
Thro' the land, as waters do, 

It went gliding up the hill, 
Emptying into azure blue. 

"Now," said Iho, "we will sail 
Seaward on its crystal tide." 
So he launched a golden leaf, 
And we rigged it for our ride. 



VERSES. 91 

Silvery cobwebs formed our ropes, 

And our sail the gauzy wing 
Of a butterfly, which caught 

Buoyantly the breath of spring. 

Up we went towards the peak. 
Passing nianv a laughing rill, 

Rounding many a curve and rock, 
As a bird would soar the hill. 

Soon we reached the Magic Sea, 
Where the stars were on its floor. 

And some broken bits of moon 
Lay strewn out along its shore. 

By its brink a pier uprose. 

Built of amethyst and green, 
Holding up a rainbow bridge, 

Arching out above the scene. 

All its waves were twilight blue, 
By the zephyrs softly scrolled. 

As we swiftly sailed awa}' 

From its banks of sunset orold. 



92 ^A^c:*^}' SUMMITS. 

Overhead were fairy suns 
With a light as soft as snow, 

While we watched our shadows glide 
Over starry shoals below. 

When far out upon the wave, 
Out of sight of land and pier, 

Iho stopped our leaf to rest, 

And said, "Listen! don't you hear?" 

Out across the twilight tide 
Came a music soft as light; 

This, he said, was Elfin bands 
Playing on the Isle of Night. 

Then he told me that the bridge. 
Laid in gold and green and gray. 

Was the pass=way over which 
Many went to hear them play. 

"Oh," cried I, "let's sail to them." 
Iho smiled and laid his hand 
On the golden rudder stem, 
Heading for the Elfin land. 



VEJ^SES. 93 

Now the scene began to fade, 
While the music still flowed on; 

Out I reached my hand — alas! 
Elf and leaf and sea were gone! 

Up I jumped — ''Ah, Iho's sea 

Must have sprung a-leak," I said; 

And it had — The rain poured down 
On the shingles overhead! 



94 SNOJV)' SC'MMITS. 

EVENING ON THE FARM. 



Sunset gilds the cotton-wood 

Where the leafy nests are many — 

Homes which wrapped in quietude 
Have but little grief — if any. 

By the pond the noisy geese 

Flop their wings and cry for trouble, 
While the "chickies" scold for peace 

On the straw-ricks and the stubble. 

Out upon the well-curb, puss 

Eyes the pup, that, crouched below her, 
Barks and looks as mischievous 

As a woolly clown before her. 

Now the puflting cattle come 

Up from pastures faintly sunny, 

Where the bees are flying home 

With their stores of pilfered honey. 



By the barn the pigs are all 

Quarreling over corn presented, 

While their shadows on the wall 
Are as black and discontented. 

At his door the pigeon sits, 

Smoothing down his breast of feathers. 
While the swallow soars and flits 

With the stubble w^hich she gathers. 

Brush Grove ^ Icnva. 



96 SNOlVy^ SUMMITS. 



THE GROVE. 



I. 
Summer breezes fill the grove, 

Laden with the flowery breath 
Of the prairie, green and gold — 

Which the winter puts to death. 

II. 
Snows of winter, white and cold. 

Winds as cutting as a knife, 
Put a death within the grove — 

Which the summer filled with life. 

Brush Grove ^ loiva^ 1884. 



V/^RS/CS. 97 



DROPS OF RAIN. 



I. 
Now the driven drops of rain 

Rest a while 
On a frowning window-pane, 

Where the smile 
Of a little child in-doors, 
Saddens as her heart deplores 
For the straying drops which cling 
To the cold and glassy thing, 
Till with sympathy and love. 
For the wanderer from above, 
She with fingers soft and thin 

Takes them in. 



98 SNOIl'}' SUMMITS. 



II. 

lyCt these driven thoughts of iiiiiie 

Rest awhile 
On the window-lights divine 

Of the soul, 
Till an angel watching there 
In the dark and murky air, 
Sees the straying hopes which grope 
In life's cold and glassy scope, 
And at Hea\'en\s wise command. 
She extends her loving hand. 
And from out this world of sin 

Takes them in. 



VERSES. 99 



FINALE. 



I. 

The stars are spin)iing on /heir zt>ay. 

Loiv in the zvest the last faint lijie 

Of sunset dies about the pine 
Which leans against the sinking day. 
The tzvilight gathers — far and near 

I see the misty pea/cs of zi'hite^ 

That sho/i/der all the sleeping nighty 
Which rests above the rolling sphere. 

II. 

The book is closed and laid azi'ay, 
While on its pages ^ black and zchite., 
There blink the stars of yesternight., 

And sleeps the sun of yesterday. 

Its fading pictures., once so fair., 
By Fancy'' s art fill fingers zvrought., 
Are nozv but glinunering ghosts of thought., 

Which vanish in the viezcless air. 



100 S NO IVY SUMMITS. 

Its hopes and aspirations raised^ 

As batiners ivorked ivith rhytned device^ 
Seem now bnt bari'en crags of ice ^ 

Where late the sun of conrage blazed. 

Bnt hist/ — / hear among its leaves 
A dream — as quiet as a mouse — 
A dream ivJiicJi raids the dreamer'' s house y 

Whe7'e busy Fancy sits and iceaz'es 

A garment from the threads of light ^ 

WJiicJi 7C'arm tlie planets on their march — 
A garment donned by heaven'' s arch^ 

And buttoned 7vith the stars of night. 

Oh linger.^ Hope, betivixt the gray 

Of leaves.^ ivJiere Fancy paints her dreams — 
The dreams ivhicJi die ere morning beams^ 

And sleep forgotten by the day. 



y 



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